http://www.nature.com/eye/journal/v17/n4/full/6700391a.html
"INF-alpha therapy has been known to cause a variety of ocular lesions.1,2 Typical lesions include cottonwool spots and retinal haemorrhages at the posterior fundus, particularly around the optic disc, secondary to retinal ischaemia, which usually appear within 3 months of the onset of therapy.
A small trial failed to demonstrate that interferon alfa-2b prevented cirrhosis in HBeAg-positive patients. Another small RCT found no significant difference in histologically confirmed cirrhosis after interferon alfa-2b alone or with simultaneous prednisone. No data were available from RCTs for other antiviral drugs or longer followup.
Hepatic decompensation was not prevented by lamivudine compared to placebo or entecavir compared to lamivudine in three underpowered trials.
Overall, 49% of patients discontinued their medication before the end of the four-year study, with 36% due to failure to comply and 13% due to side effects. Peginterferon alfa-2b was generally well tolerated. Among patients who discontinued due to interferon side effects (17.1%, 49/286), the most common reason (45%, 22/49 patients) was general intolerance to interferon (e.g., due to flu-like symptoms, malaise, and other common interferon side effects).
I'm the opposite of Frijole. I did 2b first and failed treatment, 2a the second time. Although successful it was not due to the 2a. But, I found that the side effects were much less than 2b.
Pegylation of interferon alfa-2b produces a product (PegIntron) whose clearance is lower than that of nonpegylated interferon alfa-2b. When compared to INTRON A, PegIntron (1 mcg/kg) has approximately a 7-fold lower mean apparent clearance and a 5-fold greater mean half-life, permitting a reduced dosing frequency. At effective therapeutic doses, PegIntron has approximately 10-fold greater Cmax and 50-fold greater AUC than interferon alfa-2b.
Ribavirin dosage normally is weight based, with a normal maximum of 12,000 (6 pills) a day. I weigh 144 lbs, so I started out at 1,000 mg a day, 3 in the morning and 2 at night. The doctor may do a lot of adjustments during the treatment also.
Here is some info:
http://www.drugs.com/dosage/ribavirin.
I am GT 1 and my md only wants to give me 800 mg of riba because I weigh 115 lbs. Why ?!
•for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C infection (monoinfection) in combination with interferon alfa-2b in patients previously untreated with interferon alpha:
NOTE: Consider response prognostic factors, HCV genotype, viral load, and disease progression evidence such as hepatic inflammation and fibrosis when deciding to treat a pediatric patient.
The treatment with most promising results is a combination of pegylated interferon alfa (Pegasys, PEG-Intron) and the antiviral drug, ribavirin. Interferon alfa is a protein which the human body produces naturally as a defense response to viral infections. Pegylation describes a chemical process that makes the interferon last longer in the body. Interferon increases the potency of ribavirin in the treatment of HCV.
Hi, I am a 58 year old male living in the UK and have type 2b Hepatitis C. I also have scarring to my liver. I will be starting the interferon treatment in about 4 weeks and have been told that the success rate is only 50% and treatment lasts for 48 weeks. Given the numerous articles relating to potential hideous side effects of interferon I would like to know if there are alternative treatments.
Pegasys is a brand name for Peginterferon alfa-2a or Pegylated interferon alfa-2a which is an antiviral drug made by La Roche. It is given by injection. It is used in combination with another medication called Ribavirin (a pill), and a third medication, either Victrellis or Incivek, which are both pills, to treat Hepatitis C.
Let us know if you have further questions.
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